Unpopular Opinions: Fangirl

The world of unpopular opinions. It’s a controversial place, from if they were on a break, to whether or not Snape is a massive creep (he is.) In this post, me and my friend over at Wacky Words on Instagram tried tackling ‘Fangirl’ by Rainbow Rowell.

It follows Cath, an introvert who loves and writes fanfiction, at college – and her fanfiction was turned into a full novel in 2015 following the success of this one (It’s called ‘Carry On’, is amazing and you can find my review of it here). So, let’s get straight in with our top ten unpopular opinions on Fangirl (please no hate, especially for number 9…)

1. We loved the plot. I’ve heard some people say that nothing really happened, but it was a college based drama… so let’s face it, nothing happening is realistic. I prefer novels that aren’t all about the plot because it gives you more of a chance to get to know the characters.

2. We’re sorry Cath but your fanfiction isn’t the best! Like said before, we just didn’t think it added much to the book – and none of the scenes she writes in Fangirl are in Carry On, even though it’s supposed to be her fanfiction? Maybe I’ve just read too much SnowBaz, but the standard out there is so high. Cath really needs to up her game…

3. Read Carry On first! This was something that we couldn’t agree on. I read Fangirl second and it kept Carry On comes as more of a shock. (It also made it so much clearer how MUCH Simon and Baz’s characters change between the books. Its kind of hilarious.)

4. There were extracts from fanfics and the original Simon Snow books between chapters that were just a bit random. They didn’t add anything to the story either.

5. Personally, I think ‘Carry On‘ better than ‘Fangirl’. It’s quite a slim gap, but I preferred the characters and the plot. ‘Any Way the Wind Blows’ has big shows to fill! (‘Wayward Son’ need not be mentioned. It’s nowhere near the standards of the other two, but it wasn’t too awful on the fourth or fifth reread?)

6. Single dads need more page time. One of our favourite parts of the book was how the Mum (sorry mom) was the parent Cath had grown up without. This does happen in real life and needs to become common! (I’m looking at you Jaqueline Wilson).

7. Introverts need to stop being portrayed in this stereotypical way. Some people don’t like to socialise and that’s fine – authors need to stop writing them as either really moody or all iM sO qUiRKy. Rowell did quite a good job though. Yes, Cath wasn’t parting every night, but that’s realistic.

8. Reagan was honestly the best character. Sorry Cath, but your punk roommate was just more likeable than you! I did like how their relationship developed throughout the book – Rainbow Rowell is really good at that.

9. I’m sorry fandom but you can do better than Levi! Don’t get carried away by that cute farm boy persona, sometimes he didn’t come off as the nicest. We like that he’s complicated – a love interest that isn’t 2D, shocking, I know – but sometimes it went a bit too far. But, he did come through by the end… although I’m sorry but I’d pick Baz any day. If he wasn’t gay. And taken.

10. However, Fangirl doesn’t always get the recognition it deserves. This is an entire book dedicated to fanfiction, how can it not be amazing? The 500 pages go by so quickly; it’s full of comedy, romance, feminism, LGBTQ awareness. Despite its flaws, this is one of our favourite YA novels, and would highly recommend it 🙂

Do you have any other unpopular opinions, on this series or any other books? Like and let me know in the comments! And if you enjoyed me and my friend’s crazy ideas, you might like the other tag I’ve done on this account with her so far: ‘Top Ten Titles That Would Make Great Band Names’. Check out her amazing account too at Wacky Words on Instagram.